Automatic brake-operating means for locomotives.



D. E. BEBRS. AUTOMATIC BRAKE OPERATING MEANS FOR LOCOMOTIVES. APPLICATION FILED FEB. 5, 1913.

1,080,806, Patented Dec. 9, 1913. 2 SHEETS-SHEET 1. 2 5 12 17. Efieers D. E. BEERS.

AUTOMATIC BRAKE OPERATING MEANS FOR LOCOMOTIVES.

APPLICATION FILED FEB. 5, 1913.

Patented Dec. 9, 1913.

2 SHEETSSHEET 2.

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AUTOMATIC BRAKE-OPERATING MEANS FOR LOCOMOTIVES.

Application filed February 5, 1913.

To all whom it may concern Be it known that I, DOUGLASS E. Burns, a citizen of the United States, residing at Northampton, in the county of Northampton and State of Pennsylvania, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Automatic Brake-Operating Means for Locomotives, of which the following is aspecification, reference being had to the accompanying drawings.

This invention relates to new and useful improvements in automatic brake operating means for locomotives and has for its object to provide a device of this character which will effectively operate the brakes and throttle of the locomotive at a time when necessary, even though the engineer or driver of the locomotive fails to do his duty.

A further object of the invention resides in providing a mechanism on the cab of the locomotive which has connection with the brake and throttle levers and which is adapted for contact with a signal along the roadbed and still another object of the invention resides in providing a trip lever which is spring held in position and has connection with the throttle and brake levers and which is projected laterally from the side of the cab to cooperate with a semaphore arm.

A still further object of the invention resides in providing a device which is simple and durable in construction, inexpensive to manufacture and one which will be very efficient and useful in operation.

With these and other objects in view, the invention consists in the novel features of construction, combination and arrangement of parts as will be hereinafter referred to and more particularly pointed out in the specification and claims.

In the accompanying drawings forming a part of this application, Figure 1 is a fragmentary side elevation of a locomotive showing my improved device applied to use thereon. Fig. 2 is a plan View of the same showing a portion of the semaphore frame which cooperates with the trip lever of my improved device. Fig. 3 is a longitudinal section through the device as seen on line 3-3, Fig. 2. Fig. 4 is a transverse section therethrough as seen on line 4-4, Fig. 2. Fig. 5 is a vertical section through the semaphore frame showing particularly the portion thereof cooperating with the trip lever of my device. Fig. 6 is a perspective view Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Dec. 9,1913.

Serial No. 746,358.

of the trip lever removed; and Fig. 7 is a section as seen on line 7-7, Fig. 2.

In describing my invention, I shall refer to the drawings in which similar reference characters designate corresponding parts throughout the several views and in which 1 indicates a cab of a locomotive of the usual or any preferred type to which is attached the tender 2 and fulcrumed on the wall of the cab 1, preferably on a vertical axis, so as to extend in a horizontal plane, are the usual throttle and brake levers 3 and 4 respectively.

Mounted along the road-bed at the usual points thereon are the usual semaphore signals, I having shown in Fig. 2 of the drawings, a single semaphore frame 5. Pivot-ally carried on the semaphore frame 5, are the signal arms 6 and 7, which may be operated by the usual or any preferred form of operating means and as such operating means forms no part of the invention, no detail showing and description thereof will be given.

My invention contemplates a means for the automatic operation of the throttle and brake levers in the cab of the locomotive at the necessary time when the driver or engineer has failed to see the signal or omitted to do his duty. To this end, I provide an extension arm 8 which is mounted on the top of the cab 1 and projects beyond the forward face thereof, the extreme forward end thereof having fulcrumed thereon on a horizontal axis, a lever 9. The lower end of this lever 9 has connected thereto, the ends of a pair of flexible connections 10 and 11, which extend through an opening or slot in the front wall of the locomotive and are connected at theiropposite ends respectively to the throttle and brake levers 3 and 4. A plurality of guide rollers are provided on the inner face of the front wall of the locomotive cab, over which these flexible connections extend, so that in operating the same, a minimum amount of friction will be incurred. Pivotally connected to the upper end of the lever 9 which extends above the plane of the top of the cab is a linking arm 12, the same extending rearwardly and pivotally connected at its opposite end to an arm 13 carried on an oscillating drum let. This drum 14: is mounted on a horizontal axis between the arms of a support or bearing 15 which is, in turn, secured to the top of the cab 1 and also connected to the free end of the arm 13, is a flexible connection 16 which extends rearwardly over the tender 2. Secured to the rear end of the tender 2 is a guide casing or housing 17 in which is slidably mounted a weight member 18, the latter being engaged with the free end of the flexible connection 16 above referred to. This flexible connection extends through an opening in the top of the guide housing or casing 17 and a guide pulley 19 is mounted on the top of said housing or casing 17 over which said connection extends.

It will be seen that when the weight is in its lowermost position in the guide housing or casing 17, the arm 13 on the drum 14 will be drawn rearwardly to correspondingly draw the upper end of the lever 9 rearwardly which position of the lever will, obviously draw the free ends of the levers 3 and 4 forwardly. I have not shown the connection between the levers 3 and 4 and the respective parts with which they cooperate, but when the free ends of said levers 3 and 4 are drawn forwardly, as just mentioned, the steam will be cut off and the brakes applied. I have provided a means for retaining the aforesaid weight 18 in its raised position so as not to aifect the levers 3 and 4, and also a means for automatically operating the same. To this end, a lever or the like 20 is mounted transversely of the top of the cab and fulcrumed intermediate of its ends between guides or the like 21 on a vertical axis thereon. Extending longitudinally of the top of the cab is a rod 22, which has a coil spring 23 encircling the same, one end of said coil spring being engaged with the rod 22 and the opposite end thereof engaged with one end of said lever 20. The tendency of this coil spring is to draw this end of the lever rearwardly and I have provided a stop block 24 on one end of the guides 21 to limit the movement of the lever 20 in the direction in which it is being drawn by the spring 23.

Carried on the end of the oscillating drum 14, is an arm 25, the free end of which is slotted or bifurcated and when said drum is drawn to such a position as to dispose the arm 25 in a substantially horizontal position, the slotted end thereof is adapted to receive a portion of the lever 20 therein. The portion of the lever which is received in this slot is between the fulcrum point and the end having connection with the coil spring 23 and thus when said arm 25 is engaged with said lever, the drum 14 will be held in such a position as to retain the weight 18 in its raised position.

The end of the lever 20 opposite that having the coil spring 23 engaged therewith, is slotted or bifurcated and has pivotally mounted therein a weighted arm 26. This arm is pivoted intermediate of its ends and has the outer free end thereof extending some distance beyond the side wall of the cab 1 and as the outer end of the weighted arm 26 is heavier than the inner end thereof, a stop rod 27 is provided on the bifurcated end of the lever 20 to limit the swinging movement of the weighted arm 26. When held in its normal position, the weighted arm 26 is merely an extension of the lever 20, being disposed laterally from the cab 1 in a substantially horizontal position. This arm 26 on the lever 20 is in such position, however, on the cab 1, as to contact with a pivoted arm 7 operated by the semaphore arm 7 when the free end of the latter is in its raised position, which position indicates danger and requires the stopping of the locomotive. Contact of the arm 26 with the arm 7 when the locomotive is in motion will, obviously, swing said lever 20 on its pivot against the tension of the spring 23. Such swinging of the lever 20 which acts as a trip lever will release the arm 25, whereby the weight 18 may fall to its lowermost position in the guide housing 17 The lowering of the weight will, obviously, draw the arm 13 rearwardly which will, in turn, swing the lever 9 and cause the throttle and brake levers to be eifecti'vely operated. Thus the application of the brakes to the locomotive and the cutting off of the steam will be automatic so that any omission of duty on the part of the engineer or driver of the locomotive or failure to see the danger signal will not cause an accident.

Should at any time the arm 7 be in its lowered position by accident, and there is no necessity for stopping the locomotive, the driver may avoid the automatic operation by disposing the free end of the arm 26 to its raised position. This is accomplished by means of a flexible connection 28 which extends through the top of the cab, and has engagement with the inner end of said arm 26.

From the foregoing description of the construction of my improved device, the operation thereof will be readily understood and it will be seen that I have provided an improved automatic brake operating means for locomotives which is simple and durable in construction, inexpensive to manufacture and one which will be very efiicient and useful in operation.

While I have particularly described the elements best adapted to perform the functions set forth, it is obvious that various changes in form, proportion and in the minor details of construction may be resorted to without departing from the spirit or sacrificing any of the principles of the invention.

Having thus described this invention, what I claim is v 1. The combination with a movable object having operating levers carried thereon; of a lever fulcrumed on a horizontal axis adjacent the forward end of the object, connecting means between the lower end of said fulcrum lever and the aforesaid levers, a rock shaft mounted on a horizontal axis on said movable object and provided with an upwardly extending arm, linking means between said arm and the upper end of said fulcrum lever, an additional arm carried on said rock shaft having the free end thereof bifurcated, a transversely extending trip lever fulcrumed on the object and having the free end thereof disposed on the one side of the same, said lever being adapted to be received in the bifurcated end of the arm on said rock shaft, spring means engaged with the inner end of said lever to normally dispose the-same to a predetermined position, means adapted to be disposed in the path of the trip lever to disengage the same from the aforesaid arm, and means engaged with the first mentioned arm on said rock shaft to rock the latter upon the disengagement of said trip lever, whereby said operating levers will be effectively operated.

2. The combination with a movable ob jecthaving operating levers thereon; of a lever fulcrumed on a horizontal axis at the forward end of said object, the lower end of said fulcrum lever having connection with the aforesaid levers, a rock shaft mounted on a horizontal axis on said mov able object, means engaged with said rock shaft having a tendency to rock the same rearwardly, connecting means between said rock shaft and the upper end of said fulcrum lever, a latch member carried on said rock shaft, a spring held trip lever fulcrumed on said object and adapted to be engaged with said latch member to normally retain the rock shaft against the tendency of the aforesaid means engaged with the same, said lever having one end thereof projected beyond the side of said object, and means on the road-bed of the movable object adapted to engage said trip lever and disengage the same from said latch member, whereby said rock shaft will be rocked on its pivot and the operating levers eifectually disposed.

3. The combination with a movable object having operating levers thereon; of a lever fulcrumed on a horizontal axis at the forward end of said object, the lower end of said fulcrum lever having connection -with the aforesaid levers, a rock shaft mounted on a horizontal axis on said movable object, means engaged With said rock shaft having a tendency to rock the same rearwardly, connecting means between said rock shaft. and the upper end of said fulcrum lever, a latch member carried on said rock shaft, a spring held trip lever ful crumed on said object and adapted to be engaged with said latch member to normally retain the rock shaft against the tendency of the aforesaid means engaged with the same, a pivoted extension carried on said lever projected beyond the inner side of said object and having its outer free end weighted, means to limit the swinging movement of said extension in one direction, to dispose the same to a substantially horizontal position, means to raise said extension from the movable object, and means on the road-bed of the movable object adapted for engagement with the extension on said lever to trip the latter and disengage the same from said latch member.

In testimony whereof I hereunto affix my signature in the presence of two witnesses.

DOUGLASS E. BEERS. Witnesses:

RALPH BEERS, HARVEY WUGHTER.

Copies of this patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressing the Commissioner of Patents, Washington, D. C. 

